The MBRS Program of the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), is submitting its renewal application consisting of 15 Associate Investigator Projects for a four-year period. UCSD is directing its MBRS Program focus through a joint management structure consisting of the Office of Graduate Studies and Research, vice Chancellor for Undergraduate Affairs and Thurgood Marshall College. The goal of the program is to increase the number of only those underrepresented minority students who have an expressed and committed desire to achieve the Ph.D. degree in the biomedical sciences. This goal has been achieved through the following objectives: a) Including a cadre of associate investigators (AIs) with strong extramural grant support and with a commitment to the goals of the MBRS Program. b) Linking MBRS undergraduate and graduate students early on with the above AIs who will serve as undergraduate mentors and graduate advisors. c) Providing student participants with direct assistance in preparing for the GRE, Graduate School Applications and National Fellowships. d) Establishing a follow-up database composed of UCSD-MBRS students. Support is requested for undergraduates and Ph.D. level graduate students.